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I got a 1400 on the SAT, will rank in the top 15 perceent of my graduating class (of 550 kids), played 3 sports, had a lot of community service, and received a nomination from my congressman. Yet I did not receive an offer of appointment to USNA or NAPS. It seems like my record fits the profile of an ideal appointee. I just wanted to post this to inspire all of you potential applicants to push yourselves harder in school and sports, because the Academy admissions office is obviously looking for the BEST of the best.

Also, make sure you have a back-up plan. I'll be going to Georgia Tech this fall on a Navy ROTC scholarship, and I had my NROTC scholarship offer back in November. I'll be re-applying to USNA for the next candidate cycle, because I still have a dream to go there. But at least I will get a commission somehow if the Academy reapplication doesn't work out.

viv, ditto on what Patmack said. Go have a blast at GT, do well, excel in the NROTC unit and make it happen. You might find out that you want to stay there instead of reapplying. But in the end, follow what is in your heart.

viv if it makes u feel better...
I maxed my SAT and SAT 2's(chem, writ, math 2C), had a 90 GPA at a "geek" school, slaved for 1 and a half years at my congressmans office to ensure that i wud get the nomination, lettered in varsity, and had all that blasted when my parents were turned down for citizenship. The way I see it though, in your case, GIT benefits, and USNA misses out, right? If they can't see talent where it's at and want to stick to their affirmative action policies, they can #########################.
And this WON'T make you feel better at all...but some girl at my school who has NO sports, wants to be a freaking English major, and barely runs a mile in 12 min got in. Is the world bleeped up or what?

Viv,
Unfortunately, the selection process at the Naval Academy has become extrememly political. Several years ago I applied with similar quals as yours. However, I didn't get an appointment for political reasons (I believe). I tried again the following year with better SAT scores and got shot down again.... With primary/competitive congressional nominations and party politics, there are several ways you can get screwed. Also, it's impossible to know if anyone else in your congressional district has a daddy who retired at O7. You get my point...
Don't worry about not getting in. You'll have a much better college experience at GT. I went to Cal Poly after being rejected from USNA, and I'll graduate in June. I wouldn't trade my college experience for anything.

Keep in mind that if you get accepted into the academy after already being in ROTC, you start over again from year one. I'm not sure if any of the classes you took at your civilian university transfer or not, but you're time in college does not transfer.

I'm with the rest of you guys. Viv, I know that getting into the USNA was something that you were shooting for, and maybe you still are. But don't let it get to you. Don't think that your chances of becoming an Officer are deminished. I'd rather go to a public university where I can 1)Live 2)Learn a lot acedemically and socially, and 3)Still be able to have a chance at becoming an officer. Of course, this is just my .02 cents, so take it as you wish. Anyhow, good luck with whatever route you decide to take.

- Quote on being selected for an OCS spot -
"If you are chosen, you will have been chosen by Men 'who have been there and done that' and have decided that they wished to have you in Their company, there is no such medal worth as much."

From where I sit; ROTC is the way to go. Like you have been told already, you get the big school experience with the military slant and graduate with a commission. Sometimes there is zero chance of figuring out why things happen in the world; especially the military when it comes to acceptances (my opinion). I made the mistake of not following my dreams early enough in college and going ROTC. Now I have applied to the Air Force twice and the Navy twice to become a pilot with all the rec letters and grades I could hope for and got denied every time until I put a second choice of Supply. Now I am headed to OCS 15 November 2003; granted that is for Supply I will still be a Naval Officer. Bottom line is this; if I had it all to do over again, I would do ROTC over the academies 100% of the time. Go enjoy your for years of GT and I'll see you in the fleet in a few years.

Viv,
I feel the need to chime in here. I was in the exact same position that you are in. Similar grades, SAT etc. I went to GT for a year and then reapplied to USNA. You can apply for a nomination through ROTC that puts your application in a seperate pile. The best part of doing this is you can make your decision after you have been at school for a year.

For those of you who complained about affirmative action, I'd like to let you know that I am an asian-american. Plus I was accepted to the USNA summer seminar program. so even if the Academy does do the whole affirmative action thing, it didn't benefit me. Life isn't fair. Sometimes you gotta roll with the punches.

I think i've come to the conclusion that i shouldn't bitch too much about not getting into the Academy. The bottom line is that I have an opportunity to get a commission. My plan of action is to make good grades and re-apply to the Academy. If I don't get in the second time around, I'll just finish ROTC at Tech. Popular opinion says that ROTC will give me the best of both worlds. If I do get an appointment, at least I will have the option to go to USNA, and I can make my decision after a year of school.

I went up for a visit to GTNROTC this past weekend, and I had a good time. I felt like all the midshipmen were like a big fraternity, and I am about to pledge. The unit's building is sort of like a clubhouse, with a lounge room, rec room, a computer lab, a library, and a battalion wardroom. This year is gonna be a lot of fun.....

Barring any disasters, I hope to see some of you guys in the fleet in a few years. Maybe I'll be wearing a USNA class ring, maybe not.

Let me just say that most people who go to the academy only remember the good stuff about going there after they graduate. Thats how I am. I enjoyed myself quite a bit. The summer experiences are unparalleled in my opinion. Sure you have all the BS to put up with, but its not a huge deal. You just get used to it. I'm sure I would have had a much more fun college experience had I gone somewhere else. But I enjoyed myself none-the-less. I was also an EE major. I think about 95% of my professors had Ph.Ds in electrical engineering. A lot of my math and physics professors did too. The labs were top of the line and the classes were really small. (this sort of sounds like a EE plug) But the other stuff people say is right too. I'm in Kingsville now flying T45s. Its pretty transparant who came from where. And I have ROTC friends and OCS friends and Academy friends. No matter what road you take to aviation, you'll have a blast when you get here.

I think you are forgetting that the primary purpose of USNA is to make you a naval officer. The primary purpose of GT is to get you an education. Also, USNA has a good portion of military instructors who don't have doctorates because they've been in the fleet getting leadership experience to pass on to the students they teach. There is a lot more to USNA than just a degree.

sorry to hear about being turned down, but keep at it. alot of the acceptance process stems from competiveness within districts. trust me, with those stats, you would have gotten in if you were from my home state, NV. those are the breaks though.

in my oppinion, usna was a good time, but it was by no means a school to go to if you want to live the typical college party life. but i wouldn't trade the experiences for anything.

the education you get there is top-notch, despite caruzzo's claims. the phd numbers he posted are probably accurate, but like ray said, you have to take into account the military professors who are teaching tactics, naval law, leadership, ethics for the junior officer, etc. most of them don't have phd's, but they all have masters, plus a ton of fleet experience.

anyways, in short, go to gt if you want to party and have a good time, go to usna if you want something more than that.

anyways, in short, go to gt if you want to party and have a good time, go to usna if you want something more than that.

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Wow, I guess we've been wasting our time at our schools. I had no idea that I was getting less than what I would need to become a successful officer. That right there is what can give an academy grad that unfortunate reputation. I've met some really good guys from the academy, but why the need for arrogance? Now, granted, I will be far less likely to see a flag rank having not graduated from the USNA, but I suppose I can deal with that and be very happy with the route I've chosen for myself.

i didn't want to start a pissing contest bro, and if you took offense to that comment then i'm sorry for you.

i wasn't comparing commissiong sources, i was comparing colleges, and in that, i will stand by my claim that if he wants to go to a civilian university and have a 'typical' american college experience then that's great, but going to a service academy will offer him more of an opportunity to actually learn the material he's studying, mainly due to small class sizes and professor accessibility.

i'm sorry to hear that you won't ever make flag rank, but it's probably 'cause you suffer from insecurity, not from the fact that you didn't go to the usna.

if you want my oppinion on commissioning, then here it is... it doesn't matter where you get your commission b/c there are good guys from every source, and there are sh*tty dudes from each one as well. where you got your commission doesn't affect the type of officer you are going to be (most of the time).